Method of flaking wax



Oct. 6, 1953 c. L. HALL METHOD OF FLAKING WAX 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Sept. 7, 1950 F '9- INVENTOR. CHESTER L. HALL BY v flaw,

ATTOB NEYS Oct. 6, 1953 c. L. HALL METHOD-OF FLAKING WAX.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Sept. 7, 1950 I CEEECC Fig.4

INVENTOR. CHESTER L. HALL ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 6 1953 METHOD OF FLAKING WAX Chester L. Hall, Chester, Pa., assignor to Sun 011 Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of New Jersey Original application September 7, 1950, Serial Divided and this application March 5, 1952, Serial N 0. 274,877

Claims.

requires shaping it into rectangular cakes which are dimensioned to meet the demand. In the past, molten wax was poured into chilled molds and permitted to stand until solidified. Due to the nature of wax, the exterior rapidly became solid thereby insulating the soft and often liquid wax in the center of the cake and required long periods of time for complete cooling. An advance over the casting method was achieved by the introduction of methods of extruding.

Where the later methods are used, a better product is obtained if the molten wax is prechilled before it is introduced to the extruder. This is done, normally, by spreading the wax on a chilled surface from which it is removed and fed to the extruder mechanism. In order to be rapidly pressed into an homogeneous cake of the proper color acceptable to the consumer, the wax entering the extruder should be of substantially uniform size and small enough to be immediately gripped by the extruder screw.

In preparing the wax for extruding, a rotating drum, cooled from within, was used as the chilling surface. This chilled surface was either dipped into a molten mass of wax as it rotated, or was sprayed with molten wax. Where dipping alone was used, the sheet became very heavy and peeled from the drum. The resulting pieces were too chunky to pass through the extruder and required further reduction in size. If a spray alone was applied, the coat was thin and bound tightly to the drum. The use of both a dipping and spraying action gave a layer of wax on the rotating cylinder almost as thick as the dipping procedure alone and as difiicult to work.

Where either or both of these methods were used, it was necessary to remove the wax from the rotating surface of the drum as a first step in the extrusion process. It is readily discernable that the large, irregular sheets resulting from the dipping operation when the wax would peel from the drum, required considerable handling before it was of proper size to enter the extruder. In addition, when it adhered so tightly that it could not be removed, as when the spraying method was used, it was necessary to stop the process and laboriously remove the wax from the coated drum. All this was time consuming and greatly retarded the extrusion method. It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a method for overcoming these delays in preparing wax for extruding.

In accordance with the present invention, the wax is prepared for the extruder by first improving the method and apparatus for applying the molten wax to the chilled surface of a rotating drum so that it is readily removed, and secondly, by improving the removing device. This application covering the method of preparing wax for extrusion is a division of the original case directed to the apparatus shown, filed September '7, 1950, as application Serial Number 183,574. As the wax sheet is separated from the rotating drum it is mechanically broken into pieces of approximately uniform size which are passed to the extruder in uninterrupted flow. In this way, the objectionable operating features of present devices are overcome and the extrusion of wax cakes is made continuous.

In order that a better understanding of the invention may be had, reference is made to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the assembled device.

Figure 2 is an end elevation.

Figure 3 is a vertical section of Figure 1 taken along line 3-3.

Figure 4 is a horizontal section of Figure 2 taken along line 44 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a partial perspective view of an element.

The extrusion of wax cakes has been developed to meet greater demands for the product by a continuous process which eliminates the long periods of curing required by older methods. However wax must be prepared before it can be introduced to the extruder if a commercial product is to be obtained. The early flaking devices of either the dipping or spraying types as described, subsequently cleaned with a scraper, did not prepare the wax properly for the extrusion step. To obtain a dense, uniform wax cake of color acceptable to the trade, as well as to make the process. continuous, Wax flakes of substantially uniform size fed at a constant rate to the extrusion device must be assured.

The size and general uniformity of shape of the wax flakes are important factors and are closely related to the screw-pitch and length of travel required for the extruder. In turn, the preparation of these wax flakes depends upon the type of Wax and the ability to free the wax from the surface of the chilling device. It has been discovered that the removability of the wax sheet for flaking is controlled by the Way the wax is put on the chilled surface as well as dependent on the mechanically operated removing elements.

According to the present invention the wax of proper thickness is deposited on the rotating chilled surface in a manner to make it easily removed, and is then reduced from the large sheet sections to a uniform flake of size proper for the extruder chmensions In this the process is uninterrufited' and" the product of good commercial quality.

In the drawings showing one form of device wait bath I2 which is heated as by steam coils" 2mm: supplied by aniniet pipe 2ti A' beater 28; Fi'g'ures 3; 4; and- 5, illustrated as a-' milled or fluted'rectangular rod; is rotated'by' pulley 30';

bathforward' (in the direction" of rotation) of the" center of the" drii'rrfsupport'; Although thebeater'piaced at the locus o'f'thechill'edsurfa'ce leaving the wax is illustrated as one means" for obtaining the initial rough coat of wax; it'wil'l be evidentthat other irieanssuch as moving brushes; squeegee-s; air blasts" and the like" lo'a'te'deither abbve the wax'level, or immediately below the" surface, will suffice. This clearly showrf in' the sectionafview of Flgure"3. The rotation of the chilled drum I isshown here-to be coun=' ter'clmsi'mii'sewhich raises the initially' dipped surface from thearea of the agitated wax *sur'-*' rounding the beater 2a? Thesurface of the drum |0' ascoated in'the' agitated warmth is 'theri rev6lved te the spray area of the pressureriozzles 32" which are cohtoe manifold 'ii'ffor spraying moltehwax under an even and equally distributed pressure? as shown and curls the wax cake away from the" aft, mewax sheet slides ever the preakenbarau" med pieces of Wax uniformin"- size and s ape of a' pi'illy' f the shredder" bar li ahd its at tached lugs as aie' rotatedtoengage the was sheetas it' asses over thddbctdr' bar'- 35f and bi'e'iikc r barlfl and then forces the flalfes of was; downwardly through the spaces'betweea tl'ie teeth fl in the" brez tk'er'barfll. I The wax flakes are their I dropped into the" hopper and; transferred th'roii'g'h'a collector to the'e'xtrude'r, not shown;

Tl'ies e ctiohal views of thea'pi aratus' 3 anti rare shown to give a" complete" ui id' y stbfhdihg" of' the device ahdfihbw the relative positions of the operatingielein ents'." The sectional view of" the drum Ill" m F gure 3 Shawn with the necessary bracing" H which, it is under stood-may be arranged to support the chilled sub face"as'" desired. The relative locationof the b'eatel" 28 and'the-"nozzlebahk 32" may be brought thickness of the sprayed wax coat.

closer together or separated farther apart in order to adjust the wax coatings and the degree of solidity of the first coat prior to spraying the second coat. As has already been indicated, the beater is positioned td'agitate the molten wax surface m me directionof the emerging drum areas. It will be evident that the quantity of Wax forced from the nozzles and the rapidity of rotation of the chilled drum will regulate the Also the scraper or doctor 36-'may be adjusted in sliding engagement with the breaker bar to be raised or lowered'o'nth'e' drum l0 or to change the engaging angle with the chilled surface.

In} operati6n; the' c'hilled surface of the drum lfl'dips into the molten wax 25 as it is presented by the bath 22, the depth of the wax being regulat'ed'by the flow of the wax through the inlet 26. An initial rough and irregular coating of wa'xis-pick'ed'up on the emerging" chilled surface of the drum by the agitation of the waxsurface by the beater 28" or similar means at the locus of the wax surface. The roughen'i'r'ig means isadjusted relative to the'molten wax to'ripple the surface of the wax bath against the drum surface as it lifts from the" molten wait. The initial wax coating is, therefore, streaked an'dspotted due to the aerati'or'r'and splashing of the wax as the chilled surface moves away from wax contact; deposit an even spray of wax of determined thick ne's's over the length of the chilled surface cov ering the irregular rough coat and the expbsed" surface fully. These twb' c'oats adhere together but do not destroy'the rough and irregularini'ti'al' coat. The aerated, rough undercoa't of waxbetween' the smoothly" applied'sp'ra'y coat and the chilled surface of the drum breaks the adhesion of the wax coats which w'ould'b'e' present"if a simple dipping bath or spray nozzles were used" separately or together without" the roug'hen'ing' n'ess, ready to e free'd' frorn the drum urface; turn up at the scraper edge leaving the clean and ready for continued operation. The

disengaged sheet of was: their follows the surface of the sciaper' 36 and comes into contact with the b'reaker'ba'r' 4D and the rotating shredder The spaces between thete'et'h of the breakef bar do allow the rotating-lugslion the shredder 42" to pass through-breaking the wax sheet into flakes. The size'of the flakes ma be increased or decreasedby changing the size of thebreaker bar;

teth'sp'acs thetsi zeof the shredder lugs-as wellas increasing or decreasing the speed o'f-rota From the abqve description; it s apparent that a method is provided vhich'-preliminari1yconditioriswax for the process of extrusion. It permits theprocess to operate continuously eliminat i'ng'th e' interr 'iptions previously inherent in extruding processes." Furthermore, the flaking of the wax as herein disclosed improves the texture a orefthe resulting wax cake tc'meet the" consumer der'nands.

It'is further apparent from th abov'e'descrip tion that a" methodis'provided which willpermlt The spray nozzles 32"th'e'n' many variations and substitutions yet remain Within the spirit of the invention. Apparatus to produce the rough and finished wax coats on the chilled collecting surface are readily substituted, as indicated, for the devices described in the disclosed embodiment. Substitutes are readily discernible, also, for the remaining elements by those versed in the art. It is obvious that the construction and arrangement of the parts, in general, may be varied in many ways Without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A method of preparing wax for use in an extruding process comprising the steps of depositing a preliminary irregular coating of molten wax on a chilled surface by agitating the wax during deposition, adding a smooth even wax coat over the irregular coating on the chilled surface, and removing the Wax coating thus formed as a sheet.

2. A method of preparing wax for use in an extruding process comprising the steps of depositing an initial coating of wax on a chilled surface from a mass of molten wax, agitating said coating while solidifying to form a rough coating on said chilled surface, spraying a thin film of liquid wax on said rough coating, solidifying said thin film to form, with said rough coating, a Single wax sheet which is readily removable from said chilled surface, and removing the wax sheet from the chilled surface.

3. The process defined in claim 2 further characterized by breaking the wax sheet into flakes of substantially equal size as it is removed from the chilled surface.

4. A method of preparing wax for use in an extruding process for manufacturing homogeneous wax forms comprising the steps of initially depositing a roughened coat of molten Wax on a chilled surface by agitating the wax at the locus of contact with said surface, spraying on the roughened coat a thin Wax film covering the chilled surface area, and removing the resulting wax sheet from the chilled surface after solidifymg.

5. The process defined in claim 4 further characterized by beating the wax sheet into flakes of substantially the same size at the locus of removal from the chilled surface.

' CHESTER L. HALL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

